This technology relates to hydraulic fracturing in oil and gas wells. In particular, this technology relates to pumping fracturing fluid into an oil or gas well using equipment powered by electric motors, as well as centralized monitoring and control for various controls relating to the wellsite operations.
Hydraulic fracturing has been used for decades to stimulate production from oil and gas wells. The practice consists of pumping fluid into a wellbore at high pressure. Inside the wellbore, the fluid is forced into the formation being produced. When the fluid enters the formation, it fractures, or creates fissures, in the formation. Water, as well as other fluids, and some solid proppants, are then pumped into the fissures to stimulate the release of oil and gas from the formation.
Fracturing rock in a formation requires that the slurry be pumped into the wellbore at very high pressure. This pumping is typically performed by large diesel-powered pumps. Such pumps are able to pump fracturing fluid into a wellbore at a high enough pressure to crack the formation, but they also have drawbacks. For example, the diesel pumps are very heavy, and thus must be moved on heavy duty trailers, making transport of the pumps between oilfield sites expensive and inefficient. In addition, the diesel engines required to drive the pumps require a relatively high level of expensive maintenance. Furthermore, the cost of diesel fuel is much higher than in the past, meaning that the cost of running the pumps has increased.
Additionally, when using diesel-powered pumps, each pump had to be individually manually monitored and controlled, frequently by operators communicating by radio around the wellsite. Fracturing fleets employing diesel-powered pumps do not use gas turbines, generators, switchgear, or transformers, and lack gas compression, therefore have no need to monitor such equipment.